Last night, I made a ginger-marinated pork tenderloin for my wife and me. Tonight, our daughter's making roasted cod with fennel and olives. I'll add porcini risotto and we'll also have roasted asparagus.

No idea what we're having tonight. I have artichokes to stuff (but they can wait for another day), and some chicken breasts (boneless, skinless) I thawed out last night but didn't use. My recent Italian fetish/streak has not dissipated, but only been fueled by Friday night's Sicilian wine tasting. I'm dying to drink more of them, so those chicken breasts are suddenly becoming some kind of a cutlet in my head, breaded and pan-fried with some kind of a herb or tomato sauce.

My wine shopping and I have never had a problem. Just a perpetual race between the bankruptcy court and Hell.--Rogov

Jenise, how about pounded, stuffed with a bit of grated Romano and Parm, lots of chopped parsley, a bit of pancetta, garlic, rosemary, +/- a few pine nuts then rolled, tied and THEN browned and pan deglazed with a bit of tomato sauce...just saying..these are great hot or cold, sliced in rounds on a bed of arugula with a few capers, olive oil and squirt of lemon juice...

Karen/NoCA wrote:Heinz, do you buy "dry packed" scallops? I can never seem to get a really nice golden sear on my scallops like you have. I just had scallops two days ago, and they are so loaded up with a phosphate solution and water, that I have to spend a lot of time patting them with paper towels to absorb all the water they release. They were tasty and very large, but I could not get that good sear without cooking them to death. I've asked about getting dry packed and have been told, "oh yes. we can get them but they are very pricey." So, I wonder, well if I am getting scallops with 30% water in them, what kind of a deal am I really getting!

I usually use fresh scallops directly out of the shell. Frozen goods when thawed I'll place them a long time on paper towels so that the moisture will be minimized and they are at least at ambient temperature. When frying the scallops, it is important to use an uncoated pan. The pan must be very hot when adding the scallops. You can check the required temperature with water drops. Pour a little water into the hot pan and when the water forms a drop which will not evaporate then the pan is hot enough to get a golden sear on the scallops. (See film)

Christina Georgina wrote:Jenise, how about pounded, stuffed with a bit of grated Romano and Parm, lots of chopped parsley, a bit of pancetta, garlic, rosemary, +/- a few pine nuts then rolled, tied and THEN browned and pan deglazed with a bit of tomato sauce...just saying..these are great hot or cold, sliced in rounds on a bed of arugula with a few capers, olive oil and squirt of lemon juice...

Delicious idea! Followed your instructions exactly, had all that on hand except pine nuts (though I usually have those, used hazelnuts instead). Wonderful! Thanks.

My wine shopping and I have never had a problem. Just a perpetual race between the bankruptcy court and Hell.--Rogov

We barbecued a few chicken thighs last night that got a quick, off-the-hip marinade from bergamot oil, maple syrup, oregano and a little white wine for the acid component. I bought the bottle of bergamot oil over a year ago and have barely used it (thought I'd end up using it with fish, but fresh fish is so hard to get here, we rarely have it). I knew the combination would be at least passable, but it was more than that. I could marinate all chicken in that combination of ingredients for the rest of my life--really outstanding.

My wine shopping and I have never had a problem. Just a perpetual race between the bankruptcy court and Hell.--Rogov

Jenise wrote:...(thought I'd end up using it with fish, but fresh fish is so hard to get here, we rarely have it)...

You don't have fishing poles?

We do! But nothing to fish. A run of silver salmon comes virtually right up to the house most years, but last summer it did not materialize. And the seals who used to hang out on some nearby rocks have left too; the food supply's not enough to sustain them.

My wine shopping and I have never had a problem. Just a perpetual race between the bankruptcy court and Hell.--Rogov

Last night, we started with a salad of shaved asparagus with avocado, lime juice, mint. It was billed as going well with champagne and it did, although I think it was a little one-dimensional as salads go. For the main, I did a sirloin roast. Or over-did it, I should say. It cooked up more quickly than I expected and ended up medium rather than on the rare side of medium-rare, which is what I was looking for. Fortunately, it was a good piece of meat and remained fairly tender and flavorful despite the gaffe. Sides were mashed potatoes with green garlic; roasted carrots with walnuts, raisins, and lemon juice; and a mashed root vegetable dish that my daughter added at the last minute. Dessert was strawberries with a light yogurt-cream sauce.

This thread is getting very large at 120 pages, and some people have started reporting buggy browser issues, so we're going to lock 'er down and pick up right where we left off on a NEW "What's cooking?"